He had trouble staying out of trouble

John Thomas Quamby (1895-1915)

Like his older brother, John fell foul of the law at a young age and spent years in care under the Youthful Offenders, Destitute and Neglected Children Act. But by age 16 he’d found good employment, and was working as a miner. At the outbreak of war he enlisted, joining the 12th Battalion. He arrived at Anzac Cove on 25 April 1915. He was 19 years old. Disembarking before dawn under a hail of Turkish bullets, and with packs weighing close to forty kilos, the men had to wade the final distance to shore. Nobody knows how far Private John Thomas Quamby got that morning, if he made the beach at Gallipoli. Records show he was missing at the first roll call.

Private John Thomas Quamby is listed on the Lone Pine Memorial at Anzac Cove.